Former Games and Lanes, longtime Agawam eyesore, continues to be thorn in city's side

Updated December 14, 2016 at 12:58 PM;Posted December 14, 2016 at 11:20 AM

games & lanes by MassLive file photo.jpg

Members of the Agawam City Council are frustrated with the lack of progress at the former Games and Lanes building, vacant since 2001 and located on a parcel with groundwater contamination issues. The owner has until April 2017 to submit a cleanup plan for the Walnut Street Extension property, according to Councilman Anthony Suffriti.
(MassLive / File Photo)

AGAWAM -- The former Games and Lanes site continues to be a thorn in the side of the Agawam City Council, which is calling for action on the eyesore at 346-350 Walnut St. Extension.

City Councilor Anthony R. Suffriti has been leading the charge to do something about the derelict property, reminding his colleagues at each council meeting that the parcel is located in the heart of a business district the city aims to redevelop.

"It's been way too long. We need to take care of this issue," Suffriti said at a recent meeting.

Widespread groundwater contamination was discovered at the Agawam site over 25 years ago. The building has been vacant since 2001, when a fire and malfunctioning sprinkler system led to more problems for the property.

The contaminated parcel was sold last spring to Site Redevelopment Technologies, a Foxborough company that "specializes in purchasing, cleaning, and redeveloping environmentally impaired properties," according to SRT's website.

But the property continues to rack up complaints, frustrating citizens and officials alike in this community of 28,500.

"This has gone on for 15 years," said Joseph Mineo, vice president of the City Council, voicing his frustration over the lack of progress.

Suffriti said the property owner has to submit a cleanup plan by April 2017, then has five years to implement the plan.

"The complaints are just continuous," he said at a recent meeting. "It's a hazard once again. You got kids that are playing in there, you got people who are squatting in there, and the police can't go in and get them."

The building is located in an area that's been designated as a "priority development site" by the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, which produced a 2010 economic development plan for the City of Agawam.

PVPC officials drafted zoning revisions, which were adopted in 2014, that encourage Agawam to relax dimensional requirements to promote design consistency and a pedestrian-friendly redevelopment zone.

Mayor Richard A. Cohen has said his vision for the neighborhood is that of a "mini-Northampton." For now, though, city councilors would be happy enough if Site Redevelopment Technologies did a better job securing its property.

"From what I understand, there are people going in and out of that building," Mineo said. "It's tiring driving by there every day and looking at that."